Cyber Ethiopia

Going to Gambella in the far west of Ethiopia - 720 km from Addis - is a nice antidote to the worry that Ethiopia is completely deforested. Although officials estimate that the total forest cover of Ethiopia has declined from 50% to 3% over the last hundred years or so, the Ilubabor Forest you drive through from the city of Metu to Gambella is thick and thriving and beautiful. The road isn’t great. There are a series of rickety Bailey type bridges. You descend precariously down from the highlands after Bure, getting deeper and deeper into the lowland jungles. Troops of baboons and the occasional Colobus Monkey or Guerza cross the road as you get further into the

forest. One nice thing for me as a ferengi was that Bure is the last place I heard the ubiquitous ‘you, you’ which so many kids and youth yell out at you. In Gambella people were a bit shy, but very friendly and gentle. You know you are in Gambella when you see the very dark skinned women carrying bundles on their heads. The first settlements are mostly the Sudanese refugee camps which border the road. These refugees are not sitting around helplessly, the Ethiopian government has generously provided them with land for farming. With the support of various agencies like the UNHCR, Medecins Sans Frontiers, ZOA, and Red Barna. They are provided services and support so that they have reputedly become self sufficient in food production. Smoking in Itang Ethiopia is a diverse country. Gambella is just as much a part of Ethiopia as any other region. But for those of us used to the highland people and culture, the Gambella area resembles the rest of Africa more. Although I spent 10 years working and living in Southern Africa, however, I found Gambella very different from there as well. This must be what Southern Sudan is like, although I’ve haven’t made it there myself, yet!. The defining characteristic of Gambella is water. This is a region criss-crossed by rivers and dominated by swamps - especially in the rainy season. For those overseas who think of Ethiopia as a drought stricken country - Gambella would be a shock! There are five peoples in Gambella - the Nuer, Anuwak, Mejinger, Opo and Komo. As well there have been highland people resettled in Gambella under the previous government, the Derg, including Amharas, Tigrayans, and Kambata. The resettlement program, which was the government’s answer to the highland famine as well as reputedly a political solution to the support base of the rebels, is generally considered a failure. Poat at Gambella The idea of taking people from the crowded highlands to the sparsely populated and very lush lowlands of Gambella makes sense on the surface, but it requires more resources and organization than the Derg government put into it. The hapless highlanders, many of whom were reputedly forced to resettle, found themselves with few resources and relentlessly attacked by the lowland diseases such as malaria which they had no natural immunity to. Many died. Once the Derg was overthrown many decided to leave and return to their previous homes if they could. Those who stayed seem to be quite happy and mixing well with the local population. When Gambella officials were asked if they would like more resettlement now, they answered no, it caused too much stress. My first impression of Gambella town was very positive. Tukuls appeared at the side of the road, increasing in number and density. It is spread out, without much crowding and no apparent centre. It was hot (36 degrees C), but not as hot as it gets in January to March, and very relaxed. No hassle. The bridge across the Baro River is big, well lighted, and impressive. Gambella people seem very proud of it. They are so keen to make it last that they have a strict rule, which I’d been warned about, that only one vehicle at a time is allowed on the bridge. Armed guards on both sides enforce this rule. Frankly I think the bridge is sturdy enough to handle dozens of vehicles at the same time, but I admire the responsibility and pride of the local population in preserving it. It is a wide river with a lot of crocodiles, so I can imagine what it was like before the bridge. As you cross the bridge you are greeted by two sights - to the right is the old and still current port of Gambella, and to the left is the beach where people and cars compete in being washed. I’d heard about the port of Gambella, which almost a hundred years ago the British tried to turn into a major trading route for Ethiopia down the Baro to the Nile and Khartoum. I couldn’t quite believe this was the port I’d heard about. It was essentially a cement wall at the edge of the river with some moorings and a few dilapidated buildings. Trade had been cut off since the war in Southern Sudan had escalated in the 1970’s, so the rather small port had essentially been abandoned. The beach scene has people washing themselves and their clothes, and a surprisingly large number of vehicles receiving the same treatment. I didn’t go down to the beach, there is something about washing that I think deserves privacy, and I didn’t need to and wasn’t prepared to wash myself there. One official said that someone had been taken by a crocodile a week before, which another official denied. There is a famous story about a Peace Corps volunteer in the area who went for a swim and was taken by a very large crocodile. Apparently daddy in the States immediately sent down a big game hunter who got the croc less than a week after the incident. They cut it open and removed the various parts of the volunteer, including a leg with sneaker still attached. There are apparently photographs, but I haven’t had the misfortune of seeing them. Guidebooks say that you can’t take pictures from the bridge. For whatever reason, I had no trouble with this, and the guard at the bridge even posed for me when I asked if I could take pictures. I should admit that I was in a privileged position for the whole visit, accompanying the Canadian Ambassador John Schram and hosted by the Regional Vice President, so this may have coloured my experience a bit. The absolutely unique thing about Gambella is that it was a British outpost until 1956. The Emperor Menelik granted the port and surrounding area around the turn of the century to the British so they could set up the trade route through Sudan. Steamers took a lot of coffee and other goods out this way - 7 days to Khartoum and 11 days back. The Italians took it from the British in 1935-36, but the British regained it in 1940-41. There is a grave of a British general which I failed to get to. The British then held Gambella as part of their Sudanese protectorate until Sudan gained their independence, when Britain ceded Gambella back to Ethiopia. There isn’t too much evidence of either the British or the Italians left. There are the remains of an Italian fort near the river past the beach. The port area, although now dilapidated, has a nice tree lined avenue and cement walls which the British must have arranged. I could imagine the moustachioed British officer with his stick under his arm saying - ‘Right chaps, lets get those trees planted in a straight line’. Gambella town has wide avenues and an appreciable market. There are plenty of fairly swish looking government buildings. The government Ethiopia Hotel is the place to stay, and serves a nice meal (especially the Nile Perch). In terms of value for money – the ferengi price of 140 birr a night for a double room with a ceiling fan and running water is a lot more than you pay for a local private hotel - but worth it for me. The shower water is disconcertingly brown - the colour of the Baro River - and although unheated it doesn’t have to be. Lukewarm water in that heat is just fine. Gambella is a nice town to walk around in. Everyone is friendly and relaxed - you get shy hellos but no hassle that I saw. There are plenty of bars to wander around to, although a sensible person like me of course didn’t do that very much. I could see hanging around in Gambella for a week and enjoying it.